DESVÁN DEL LIBRO

When you think about your business, what are you most proud of?

25 years of a two-generation family business, passionate about books.
We were pioneers in using the internet to sell second-hand books in Spain and we are proud of it, especially because of the high level of customer satisfaction, which has been maintained over the years. We sell worldwide (see our rates).

What is the history of your commerce?

El Desván del Libro is a shop dedicated to the sale of second-hand books or, as we like to call them, "already read", an expression that has spread among our colleagues. It was founded in 1996 in Calle Jorge Juan. In this neighbourhood, which has a high cultural level, second-hand books were quickly seen as an added value as they gave access to out-of-print, curious or simply cheaper books, and they were very well received, so we soon moved to Fernán González, 20 in order to provide more space for the large number of copies that were growing steadily.
We also have a warehouse in the same area in order to have a larger stock. If you come to visit us with a title in your mind, we recommend that you reserve it beforehand on the website so that you do not have to wait. We will confirm by email and there is no obligation.

What is your professional experience?

The shop is managed by three people with different functions:
Manuel, who makes the purchases, catalogues all the books and attends to customers in the shop and by telephone.
Mónica (Graduate in Library Science and Documentation from the Carlos III University and Bachelor in Documentation from the Carlos III University), who manages all the home sales and answers queries by email.
Last but not least, David, who mainly places and looks for books when they are in demand and helps us in all other aspects. Our great support.

How has covid 19 affected your business?

Although we had to close the physical shop for a few months due to legal requirements, our extensive experience in online sales allowed us to continue providing home delivery service in Madrid, the rest of Spain and those countries that kept their borders open to mail.

What services and products does your business provide?

In our shop you can buy or sell used books of all subjects and periods:

WE SELL BOOKS: in the shop at Fernán González 20, by email, by phone or on our website.
WE RESERVE BOOKS: by the same means and without obligation, for a period of one week.
WE BUY BOOKS: although we discard those that are no longer commercial, such as encyclopaedias, school textbooks, childrens books, other languages, non-current computer books, accounting and some other non-commercial subjects or those bestsellers of which we already have many copies at that moment. If you wish, you can send us an email with the titles or photos and we will indicate our interest in them before you move.